Unit410
Unit410 Case Study
Overview
After years in stealth mode, Unit410, a Coinbase subsidiary specializing in Self-Custody & Staking for Crypto-Native RIAs, emerged to establish their public presence. As specialists in institutional-grade security and compliance, they've developed a unique system where multiple keys held by different parties require precise coordination to function. Their code, trusted by institutions and governments alike, showcases their authority in hard encryption and multi-party computation.
Results
The website has successfully positioned Unit410 as the leading institutional self-custody provider, with:
- Secured funding to develop their product from an already successful service
- Achieved a clean rebranding that elevated their existing identity
- Launched a high-performance website with new design standards
- Established a strong presence in the institutional crypto space
Brand Identity
The design system emphasizes trust, security, and institutional-grade capabilities through a clean, professional aesthetic. The military-style iconography and bespoke animations reflect their security-first approach, while maintaining sophistication and technical prowess.
The logo system was designed to be versatile, with the full "UNIT410" mark for primary use and a compact "U410" version for smaller spaces. This flexibility ensures the brand remains recognizable even in constrained environments like favicons or social media avatars, while maintaining the military-grade precision of the original design.
Website Design
The website embodies the "less is more" philosophy, featuring an encrypted hero section that displays the first Bitcoin blockchain hash and the famous "The Times 03, 2009..." message as an easter egg. The single-page design includes social proof through a tweet from Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, emphasizing Unit410's institutional backing and expertise.
The color palette was carefully crafted to work seamlessly across dark and light modes, automatically reflecting the user's system settings. Microanimations were thoughtfully designed using progressive disclosure on hover to avoid overloading the page, with lazy loading for optimal performance.
The only accent color used was blue, specifically to highlight the Coinbase logo in the footer. Even the footer features a terminal-style animation with animated bars, and we used Coinbase Mono as a subtle nod to the parent brand.
Custom components were designed to look like terminal elements, from inputs and buttons to folder structures created with ASCII characters.
Mobile Experience
The website was thoroughly tested across different screen sizes, with a seamless transition from a maximum width of 630px. This careful attention to responsive design ensures full legibility, comfortable reading, and flawless art direction at every breakpoint.
Attention to Detail
Every aspect of the website was carefully considered, including the 404 page which features a playful "Have you lost your keys?" message, maintaining the brand's security-focused identity even in error states. This attention to detail extends throughout the site, where even error messages and loading states are crafted to reinforce the brand's institutional-grade security positioning.
The Experience
Working with Unit410 was exceptional - their ability to move fast, make decisions, and delegate effectively made them the perfect client. Their clear vision and trust in the creative process allowed us to deliver a website that perfectly captures their essence while maintaining the highest standards of design and functionality.
